India’s Nisha Dahiya will go up against Ukraine’s Tetiana Sova, seeded fifth, in the Round of 16 of the women’s 68kg freestyle category as the wrestling competitions begin at the Paris Olympics on Monday.
Wrestling has seen India’s strong presence at the Olympics, however, there is a lot of apprehension this time.
Dahiya, an Asian Championships silver medallist, will be the first Indian wrestler on show at the French capital. Her opponent, Tetiana, has won four medals at the European Championships, including the 65kg title in 2022.
If Dahiya wins, she could go up against Moldova’s Irina Ringaci, who is seeded fourth, or Pak Sol Gum from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the quarter-finals.
The People’s Republic of China’s Zhou Feng, an eighth-seeded wrestler, is also on Dahiya’s side of the draw, which was announced on Sunday.
Repechage rounds will be a part of the wrestling tournament at Paris 2024 but
only from the quarter-final stage onwards.
Much of the spotlight will be on Vinesh Phogat, who will have to shake off a tumultuous build-up to the Paris Games when she takes the mat, aiming for an elusive Olympic medal.
Besides Vinesh, five of her colleagues will also strive to write their own success stories at the biggest stage.
Vinesh is easily India’s most accomplished woman wrestler, with two World Championships, three CWG and eight Asian Championships medals adorning her cabinet, but her previous two Olympic campaigns have ended in heartbreaks. She had returned from Rio (2016) with just a broken leg, but from Tokyo (2021), she came back with her soul scarred after a crushing defeat ‘by fall’ in the quarter-finals.
She also waged a battle outside the mat when she accused the WFI chief of sexual misconduct. Leading the unprecedented protest, Vinesh spent nights on the streets along with Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik. It was a long battle, which continues in Indian courts.
More challenges awaited Vinesh as she could not participate in the World Championships, where Antim Panghal locked in a quota in the 53kg category, which Vinesh had made her own. Now she has had to drop down to 50kg, which is full of proven performers. Vinesh is unseeded, which means she will have a tough road to travel.
Four-time world champion Yui Susaki, four-time Olympic medallist Maria Stadnik, Tokyo Games’ bronze winner Sarah Hildebrandt and two-time World medallist Dolgorjavyn Otgonjargal are all there in the 50kg category.
Fitness issues
There are doubts over the fitness of Anshu Malik (women’s 57kg) and Aman Sehrawat (men’s 57kg).
Anshu suffered a “neck spasm” during training and was advised to take 15 days of rest. She went to Japan for training. It will be her second Olympic appearance. She has had considerable success at the senior level, having won a Worlds silver. If she is fit, she stands a good chance of making the medal round.
Panghal too has not been tested since the 2023 Asian Games. She had missed the Asian Championship in March this year, owing to a back injury. But being seeded should help Antim.
Aman has made steady progress and, in the process, replaced Tokyo Games silver medallist Ravi Dahiya in the 57kg category. Aman, an U-23 world champion, has the hunger to excel.
